Trust is a critical ingredient in your relationships with other people. It comes hard and it can be lost quickly. Trust me (no pun intended), I speak from experience!
If I were asked to teach a five-minute lesson on how to build trust, I would highlight the following three points:
- Do what you say you’re going to do. Even with small things. Every time you say you’re going to do something and you don’t do it, trust is eroded or cancelled.
- Tell the truth. When you tell lies, even small lies, you put doubt into other people’s minds as to whether or not you can be trusted.
- Keep secrets. If somebody tells you something in confidence, don’t betray that confidence by sharing private information with others.
Even Jesus’ disciples had to learn to trust their Master. I know there were times they doubted what Jesus said, but their trust was bolstered every time He came through in the clutch. This relationship of trust climaxed when Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to them in Jerusalem, just as He said He would!
To see if Jesus deserves your trust, apply the points above to your personal relationship with Him.
Does Jesus do what He said He’d do? Has He loved you? Has He provided for you a family, friends, food, clothes, and shelter? Has He been present in your life on a daily basis? Has He forgiven your sins?
Does Jesus tell the truth? He has given you His own words in the Holy Bible. As Lutheran Christians, you know by faith that the words of Scripture were inspired by God Himself and written down by handpicked prophets and apostles. Everything you need to know to be saved and to live a Christian life can be found within the pages of the Bible.
Does Jesus keep secrets? When you confess your sins to Jesus, He keeps those sins private and issues forgiveness for all of them. How can He do that? Well, He paid for them already by dying on the cross. Now He grants you an unlimited supply of forgiveness for the simple reason that He loves you.
Your trust in Jesus will be validated once and for all when you get to heaven. It’s going to be an indescribable reunion with all Christians who trusted in Jesus and died in faith. Until then, be trusting and trustworthy!
Daniel Madson is a former school teacher and a member of Abiding Lutheran Church in Cottage Grove, Wisconsin.
